Nozzle and filtering device for vacuum cleaners



March 14, 1961 P. T. HAHN 2,97

NOZZLE AND FILTERING DEVICE FOR VACUUM CLEANERS Original Filed Nov. 21,1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 P. T. HAHN NOZZLE AND FILTERING DEVICE FOR VACUUMCLEANERS March 14, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Nov. 21, 1955 3%Paul I Yi/m m Uted States Patent NOZZLE AND FILTERING DEVICE non VACUUMCLEANERS Paul T. Hahn, Harrisburg, Pa., assignor to John OsterManufacturing $0., Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Originalapplication Nov. 21, 1955, Ser. No. 547,970.

This invention relates to vacuum cleaners and refers more particularlyto improvements in the suction nozzle and filter components of vacuumcleaners, particularly small portable hand-held electric vacuum cleanersof the type disclosed in my copending application, Serial No. 547,970,filed November 21, 1955, of which this application is a division.

In general, it is the primary objective of this invention to provide asmall but efiicient vacuum cleaner that can be easily operated Whileheld in one hand, and is especially, though not exclusively, useful tobarbers for removing hair clippings from the head, neck and clothing oftheir customers.

More particularly, it is the purpose of this invention to provide ahand-held vacuum cleaner of the character described featuring animproved arrangement of the components of the cleaner to assure thedesired compactness thereof.

In a more specific sense, it is an object of this invention to provide avacuum cleaner of the character described with an improved suctionnozzle and filtering device that may be attached to the front of thecleaner housing and which enables the latter to be reduced to the smallsize necessary merely for enclosure of the fan of the cleaner and theelectric motor by which the fan is driven.

In this connection, it is a further object of this invention to providea vacuum cleaner with a suction nozzle and a filtering device in therear or discharge end portion of the nozzle, and wherein partition meansin the nozzle defines a dirt receiving and collecting pocket ahead ofthe filtering device, into which dirt removed from the air passingthrough the nozzle may accumulate.

Still another object of the invention resides in the provision of avacuum cleaner of the character described wherein the partition in thesuction nozzle extends forwardly to the mouth of the nozzle andrearwardly to a zone near the filter device in the discharge end of thenozzle to enable nearly the entire nozzle to be immersed in asterilizing solution without danger of entry of the solution into thedirt collecting pocket of the nozzle.

A further object of this invention is to provide a small, hand-heldvacuum cleaner of the character described, wherein the filtering deviceincludes a mounting member that fits within the rear of the suctionnozzle and is held in place in the cleaner by attachment of the nozzleto the front of the cleaner housing, and wherein the filtering device isremovable from the rear of the nozzle upon detachment of the nozzle tofacilitate replacement of the filterand emptying of dirt from the dirtcollectingpocket of the nozzle. v

The filtering device of this invention also constitutes an improvementover its predecessors in that it enables and, providesfor the use offlexible filtering material in sheet form, which nevertheless may bereleasably held in the form of a cup, while in use, by novel grid meanswhich constitutes part of this invention. This grid means makes itpossible to provide a filtering surface having an'area far greater thanthat of the crosssection of the cured together.

crease in the size of the passage.

This is particularly important in hand-held vacuum];

cleaners where the housing, which in this case provides the walls of thesuction passage, must be kept relatively small in diameter to enableit-to be comfortably held in the hand of a user.

It is therefore another object of this invention to provide a filteringdevice for use in the suction duct of a vacuum cleaner, which filteringdevice includes means for forming and releasably holding normally flatsheet filtering material in the shape of a cup of a size to fit within asuction duct of limited size and to provide a filtering surface thereinhaving an area far greater than the cross-sectional area of the duct.

More specifically it is an object of this invention to provide a filterdevice for vacuum cleaners comprising, an easily disposable paperrfilter membrane and a retainer for readily removably securing the samein position in the cleaner at the joint between the suction producingmeans therein and the cleaner nozzle, while at the same time impartingto the filter membrane the shape of a cup so as to provide increasedfiltering area.

With the above and other objects in view which will appear as thedescription proceeds, this invention resides in the novel construction,combination and arrangement of parts substantially as hereinafterdescribed and more particuarly defined by the appended claim, it beingunderstood that such changes in the precise embodiment of thehereindisclosed invention may be made as come within the scope of theclaim.

The accompanying drawings illustrate one complete 7 example of thephysical embodiment of the invention constructed according to the bestmode so far devised for the practical application of the principlesthereof, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a hand-held vacuum cleaner utilizingthe suction nozzle and filtering device of this invention, illustratingthe manner in which such a cleaner is held during use;

' Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view through the cleanerillustrating the suction nozzle and filtering device of this inventionin place thereon;

Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the components ofthe filter device of this invention and their relationship to the frontend portion of the body section of the cleaner; and

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the cleaner with its suction nozzleseparated from the restof the unit.

Referring now. particularly to the accompanying drawings, in which likenumerals indicate like parts, the numeral 5 designates the generallytubular housing of a;

hand-held vacuum cleaner of the type disclosed and.

claimed in my copending application, Serial No. 547,970," filed November21, 1956. Generally, the cleaner in cludes the aforementioned housing 5which comprises a body section 6 and a rear end section 7 removably se-At the front end of the housing is'a substantially short suction nozzle8 having a transversely flattened and narrow front end portion openinginto an enlarged substantially tubular rear or discharge'end por tionwhich is readily detachably secured to thetfrontof l the body section byreleasable latches 9. The adjoining substantially tubular portions ofthe suction nozzle l and the housing, of course, provide part of thesuction duct of the cleaner.

A suction fan 10 and its drive motor 11 are mounted within the housing,and as best seen in Figure 2; thefan is of the centrifugal'type anddischarges through ports 12 in the rear section of the housing. The airentering the fan, is, ofcourse, drawn into thc .2 mouth of the suctionnozzle 8 where it flows through a channel 13 defined by a transversepartition wall 14 which divides the nozzle interior into the air channel13 along the upper part of the nozzle and a dirt collecting pocket 15below. the air channel. From the channel 13 the incoming current of. airpasses-through a filter 16 forming part of the-filtering device. of thisinvention, where its entrained dirt and hair clippings are caught in themanner brought out hereinbelow. The filtered air then enters the body 6of the housing to flow longitudinally thercthrough and over the drivemotor 11 before reaching the fan inlet.

The mounting for the fan and itsdrive motor within the housing comprisesa centrally apertured disc 21 to one side of which the stator frame 22of the motor is secured by screws 23 passed through a plurality ofcircumferentially spaced legs 2 on the stator frame and threaded intothe disc 21. This secures the motor to the disc with the motor shaftprotruding through the aperture in the disc to the other side thereofwhere the farrisfixed to the shaft. The aperture in the disc thusdefines the inlet of the fan, and unrestricted access thereto frominside the housing body 6 is afforded by large spaces between the legs24.

An elastic collar 26 of rubber or other similar material. tightlyembraces a peripheral flange 27 on the disc, and this elastic collar isclamped between the rear end of the housing body section 6 and ashoulder collectively formed by the adjacent extremities of. landsbetween the discharge ports 12 in the rear housing section 7. Metalwashers 31 are preferably interposed between the opposite faces of theelastic collar and the housing parts or shoulders between which it isclamped; and to secure these parts together the rear housing section 7telescopes over the adjacent rear end of the body 6 and is securedthereto by fastening screws 32.

By mounting the fan and drive motor in this manner, the body 6 of thehousing is permitted to be of smaller cross section than the rearhousing section 7, and this has the advantage of enabling the body 6,which-serves as the handle for the device, to have a cross sectionalsize'and shape least fatiguing to be held in one hand. Such a shape byexperience has been found to be a substantially triangular formationwhich is characterized by. diametrically opposite large and small curvedportions 33 and 34, respectively, connected or joined by relatively flatupwardly divergent side portions 35. Both curved portions 33 and 3eareconcentric to the of the motor and the fan but the larger curvedportion-33, whichgmay be considered the top of the handle, has a largerradius than the curved portion 34. As a result, a relatively large space36 is provided across the top of the motor so that the flow of airthrough the motor housing is greatest across the top of the motor whereit is more effective to dissipate the heat developed by the motor.

The exteriors of the relatively fiat sides and also of the smallercurved portion 34 are longitudinally fluted to define downwardly facingmildly sharp edged ridges 37 to give the handle'an easily grippednon-slip surface.

A perforated guard plate 39 secured to the front end of the motor statorand equipped with a plurality of resilient bumpers 40, which occupy thecorners defined by the junction of the large radius curved portion 33with the relatively flat sides 35 of the housing wa1l, provide means toassure installation of the motor in a predetermined angular position inthe housing. By so doing, the leads by which the motor is connectedto-the terminals of an on-otf switchhaving its actuator 38 located onthe left side of the housing, where it may be easily manipulated by thethumb of the right hand, will also beproperly positioned.

The filtering device of this invention is mounted partly in the front ofthe body section 6 of', the housing,- and partly in the rear of, thesuction nozzle. 8-. Hence, it may be said to be located in the suctionduct of the cleaner. It includes a disposable filter membrane 16provided by a disc of flexible filter paper, and a grid 17 around whichthe disc is folded to shape the same into a shallow cup or basket. Asubstantial part of the well of the filter cup extends into the rear ofthe suction nozzle 8, and is received between the open front end of thebody 6 and the grid.

The grid 17, which is an important part of the filter device and is bestseen in Figure 3, has a ring-like filter retaining portion or rim 18 ofa size and shape to fit somewhat snugly into the front end of the bodysection 6 of the housing, and an outwardly directed flange or head 20 onits front, which fits snugly within the rear or discharge end of thenozzle 8, ahead of the front of the body. Projecting axially rcarwardlyfrom the ring like portion 18, the grid has a number ofcircumferentially spaced fingers 19 which protrude into the front of theduct defined by the body section 6 and hold the central portion of thefilter disc 16 displaced a distance rearwardly from the front of thebody section. The outer portions of the filter disc are folded forwardlyaround the fingers l9 and are confined between them and the surroundingwall portions or" the body section 6 so that the filter membrane is heldin the desired cup-like shape during use of the cleaner. In this mannera large filter area is obtained without necessitating enlarging thecross section of the housing.

The grid 17 is preferably a plastic molding and the flange 20 at itsfront also provides a shoulder which seats upon the front edge of thehousing to clamp the peripheral portion of the filter cup therebetween.

Changing or replacement of the filter requires detachment of the suctionnozzle from the front of the body section of the housing, and to permitthis to be quickly done, each latch 9' is of the spring type andconsists simply of a spring blade 41 fixed at one end to the fore partof. the body portion 6 of the housing and projecting forwardly to-havcits free end terminate adjacent to a shoulder 42 encircling the housingslightly rearwardly of the extreme front edgc'thercof. The free end ofthe spring blade has its side portions cut away to provide rearwardlyfacing edges over which hooks 43 projecting rearwardly from the adjacentrear edge of the nozzle engage.

Disengagernent of the latches to permit detachment of the nozzle isaccomplished by depression of the spring blades through the medium ofbuttons 44. In one case, the button 44 projects through an opening inthe nameplate 45 of the cleaner and in the other case it projectsthrough an'opening in a narrow cover plate 46 secured to, the housing.

On the inside of the suction nozzle just forwardly of its rearmost edgeare four abutments 48 the rear ends of whichlie in a common plane sodisposed with respect to the extreme rear edge of the nozzle that whenthe nozzle is in position on the housing these rear ends of theabutmentsbear against the flange 20 on the front of the filter-shapinggrid tohold the same in place.

As noted he'reinbefore, the suction nozzle has a transverse partitionwall 14 dividing it into an air passage 13" along the top of the nozzle,and a dirt collecting pocket 15, beneath the air passage or channel andcomrnunicating with the interior of the nozzle only at the rear portionthereof, along a transverse zone adjacent to the front of the filteringdevice. This partition wall is imperforate as isalso its junction withthe opposite sides of the nozzle. Accordingly, the nozzle may beimmersed. in abath of antiseptic solution to cleanse and sterilizethemouth thereof without entailing wetting of the interior of the dirtcollecting pocket, but of course it should be understood that in doingso the nozzle must not beimmersed into the solution to a depth at which.the rear edge of the partition wall 14 lies below the surface of thebath, and that during the immersion the nozzle would be disposedsubstantially vertically.

Although the purpose of the dirt collecting pocket may be apparent, itmight be noted that its location assures that hair clippings and dirtdrawn through the air passage 13 and against the filter membrane willdrop by gravity and be retained in the pocket, not to fall back throughthe mouth of the nozzle if the motor is stopped while the device is heldwith its nozzle pointing downward. Also, a substantial quantity of dirtor hair clip pings may accumulate in the pocket, without interferingwith free flow of air through the filter membrane, and the latter as aresult, is substantially self cleaning.

When not in use, the vacuum cleaner may be hung from any suitablesupport by means of a bail 47 formed integrally with the rear section 7of the housing.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, it will be apparent to those skilled in this art that thisinvention provides a suction nozzle and filter means for vacuum cleanersand the like which is not only economical in use but also effectivelyutilizes normally flat filter material in such a way that maximumfiltration is achieved within a space of limited cross section; and thatthe provision of a dirt receiving pocket in the nozzle, immediatelyahead of the filtering device at the rear of the nozzle, renders thefilter membrane usable for long periods of time before it must bereplaced.

What is claimed as my invention is:

In a hand held vacuum cleaner: an elongated, hollow housing providing ahandle for the cleaner of a size to be easily held in one hand, saidhousing being open at its front; means in the housing, spaced behind itsfront end, for drawing air into the front of the housing; a disposablefilter comprising a normally flat sheet of filtering material extendingacross the front'of the housing and having its marginal edge portionoverlying the exterior surface of the housing, at the front thereof, allaround the housing; a grid in front of the filter having a rim portionwhich telescopes only a short distance into the front end of the housingto confine a portion of the filter against the inner surface of thehousing wall at the front thereof, said grid also having on its rimportion a circumferential rearwardly facing abutment which opposes thefront edge of the housing and confines another portion of the filterthereagainst, said grid also having circumferentially spaced elongatedfingers projecting inwardly and rearwardly from its rim portion into thefront of the housing, said fingers being substantially thin and havingconvex outer edges facing but receding rearwardly from the surroundinghousing wall to hold the filter shaped into a shallow forwardly openingbag having a fiat bottom substantially smaller in area than the interiorof the housing and an outwardly and forwardly curving side wallembracing said fingers; a suction nozzle telescoped over the front endportion of the housing to cooperate therewith in confining the marginaledge portion of the filter, said nozzle having circumferentially spacedrearwardly facing abutment means in its interior which engage the frontedge of the rim portion of the grid and cooperate with the front edge ofthe housing in confining the grid against axial displacement; and meansreadily removably securing the nozzle to the housing.

References Cited the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 971,044Hutchinson Sept. 27, 1910 984,098 Lundin Feb. 14, 1911 1,088,954 WrightMar. 3, 1914 2,088,870 Reid Aug. 3, 1937 2,244,165 MacFarland et a1.June 3, 1941- 4 2,626,418 Kelly et a1. Jan. 27, 1953 2,729,303 McMahanJan. 3, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 327,922 Great Britain Apr. 17, 1930

